The Naming of An Tir
The name “An Tir” [“The Land” in Gaelic], was chosen at the First Coronet Tourney on August 24th or 25th 1973 at the Fallshire Renaissance Faire site at the Snoqualmie Falls Forest Theater during a meeting of principality heraldic officers.
Principality
When the Baronies of Three Mountains and Madrone realized that they qualified for principality status in the Society for Creative Anachronism, they both applied for that status with the Board of Directors and organized a “Royal Tourney of Union” to join them together with approval of the crown of the Kingdom of the West, into a principality of the West Kingdom.
At that tourney, on 27 May 1973, Baron Frederic of the West Tower, Founding Baron of Three Mountains, and Baron Raymond the Mild, Founding Baron of Madrone, and King Paul of Bellatrix, King of the West, signed a royal charter proclaiming the baronies and their region in the Pacific Northwest to be a Principality.
It was noted, however, that the BoD had not yet officially approved. The official charter from the BoD would be delivered by King Henrik and Queen Seitse at the first Coronet Tourney held on 25 August 1973.
An attempt to discover the actual date of approval by the Board of Directors by researching the BoD minutes resulted in an email (dated 29 April 2025) from Leslie Luther-Fulton, legal assistant serving as an Executive Assistant to the Board: “When the Archives were moved in October 2022, a lot of the really old minutes were shredded due to space constraints and condition issues (bug infestations and so forth). As they are technically legal documents and not of much business value after 7 - 10 years, it was believed that items such as the newsletters were far more important to maintain.”
Principality without a name
When King Paul and Barons Frederic and Raymond signed the first charter in May, the new principality had no name.
As a result, the next few newsletters describe the principality created in the Pacific Northwest by the union of Three Mountains and Madrone as “chartered provisionally.1
It was first called “the Incipient Principality in the North.”2
The Kingdom of the West newsletter, The Page, in their July 1973 issue suggested the name “Cascadia, but it seems that’s a local home for the bewildered.”3
[This reference to another Cascadia refers to the Cascadia Diagnostic Center in Tacoma, which was where juveniles who were committed by the courts to the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services were sent for evaluation to determine level of treatment or correctional facility they would be assigned to.4]
As the first Coronet Tourney approached in August 1973, ‘’The Crier’’ stilll referred to the principality as “Principality of the North” when it announced the first Coronet tournament would be held on August 25th at the Fallshire Renaissance Faire.
In the August ‘’The Page’’ the West Kingdom Calendar listed the August 25th Coronet Tourney, “Principality in the North.”
FROM THE PRINCIPALITY IN THE NORTH: They are still working on a name for this place. Current rumour favors Northgate. Meanwhile, they have been approved by the Directors and will hold their first Coronet Tourney on August 25 in Snoqualmie Falls Forest Theatre, smack dab in the middle of the Fallshire Renaissance Faire*. To prevent admission being charged to a Society event, which would not do at all, call Robert of Winchester, and arrange for a participant's pass. Necessary houses and running water, as well as facilities for overnight camping. Bring all which you would bring to an overnight tourney. *Not to be confused with the Renaissance Pleasure Faire, which title is copyright by Theme Events, Ltd. You know, the Pattersons.5
Even as late as the September 1973 ‘’The Page’’, it was announced: “The Principality in the North has at this writing almost decided on calling itself Nordheim. (Not Northgate, they tell us, that’s a local shopping center, but details, details….)
In a phone interview in 2025, Founding Baron of Madrone, Master Raymond the Mild said that people wanted to name it Tir Na Nog, [Land of the Young] after the Celtic otherworld, which “Tír na nÓg is depicted as an island paradise and supernatural realm of everlasting youth, beauty, health, abundance and joy.” However, he said, for the heralds it was “too mythological.”
The Meeting
According to an email dated April 22, 2025 from Theodulf of Borogrove, mentions that a “King of the West [Henrik of Havn] was involved in a discussion about what the name should be. Deirdre’s original proposal was a much longer Gaelic phrase that included ‘An Tir’ and that became the reluctant compromise.”
Deirdre’s father, Dr. Thomas E. Downey of Seattle University, taught Irish language classes which were opened to the SCA. “One person who was certainly there [in the meeting] was Deirdre who proposed the Irish Celtic name to begin with.”5
It appears that at the meeting a long Gaelic name that included “an tir” was proposed. This was considered too long and various combinations were suggested, but several of the suggestions still included the short phrase “An Tir”.
“The name was decided by 5 of us at the Tourney, myself, Robert of Winchester and 3 others whose names I don't recall. All heralds of An Tir. I don't remember Henrik being in at this meeting. The 5 of us talked about the name and came up with An Tir. I had already designed the new Arms for the Principality and that was accepted at this meeting also.” – Jerald of Galloway6
King Henrik in later years recalled “I remember there was a lot of discussion on what to call the Principality by the time we got there, with no solution in sight. I remember standing in the green green green grass at the site as the discussion continued. I said, “Why not call the Principality by the word common to several of the suggested names, that being ‘Tir’”. They responded with “An Tir.” – Henrik of Havn6
An Tir
The first known use of An Tir as the name for the principality occurs in ‘’The Crier’’ for September 1973 when it is reported that “Baron Sir Frederic of the West Tower vanquish all others on the field from the coronet lists and thereby became the first Prince of An Tir. During much ceremony, King Henrik placed the coronet upon Sir Frederic’s head to the cheers of those assembled. Sir Frederic’s lady, Anne of the White Tower was chosen to become An Tir’s first Princess.”
At that royal court, ‘’The Page’’ also reported “Their Majesties also presented the Principality Charter.”
The rest, as they say, is history.
Citations
1’’The Crier’’ June 1973, page 1.
2’’The Page’’ June 1973, page 2.
3’’The Page’’ July 1973, page 7.
4The Daily Chronicle (Centralia, WA) 1 November 1976, page 1.
5Email from Theodulf of Borogrove, May 5, 2025.
6”First Coronet Tournament (Principality of An Tir) - August, 1973”
https://history.westkingdom.org/events/event.php?event_code=2598